CELTIC flop Luis Palma has publicly apologised to both a rival player and Lech Poznan fans after his shocking tackle earned him a red card in their 2-2 draw with Rakow Czestochowa.
Palma had been impressive, scoring and providing an assist to put his side into a commanding 2-0 lead.
However, his performance was soured when he lunged into a challenge in the 55th minute on Rakow captain Zoran Arsenic, who was left writhing in pain.
Rakow boss Marek Papszun claimed after the game that a bone crack could be heard.
He said: “I didn’t see the situation because it was happening near the visitors’ technical area.
“The players said it looked very bad, they even heard bones cracking, so maybe there was a fracture.”
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The club have since released the results of a scan on Thursday afternoon, with Arsenic set to be sidelined for “six to eight weeks” with a “fractured fibula.”
While the referee Symon Marciniak initially showed a yellow card for the horror challenge, VAR intervened and upgraded it to a straight red.
Reduced to 10 men, Lech couldn’t hold on to victory, as Rakow fought back with goals from Peter Barath and Ivan Lopez to salvage a point in the Ekstraklasa clash.
Following the match, Palma took to Instagram to share his apology.
He posted: “A few hours have passed since the incident, and I would like, first of all, to offer my most sincere apologies to the coaching staff, my teammates and all the Lech fans for what happened yesterday, which left the team at a numerical disadvantage.
“Secondly, I want to publicly express my apologies and make it clear that there was never any bad intention on my part to hurt Zoran Arsenic.
“Unfortunately, I caused an injury that I never wanted to happen.
“I sincerely wish him a speedy and complete recovery, as well as strength for him, his family, and the whole team. LP77″
The 25-year-old, who quickly became a fan favourite in Poland, joined Lech Poznan on a season-long loan from Celtic in July and has already scored three goals in seven league games.
Palma joined Celtic from Greek side Aris in the summer of 2023 and featured 36 times in all competitions in his first season before losing his place in the team.
He was shipped out on loan to Olympiakos in January then sealed another loan exit this summer when the Polish outfit came calling in July.
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